Ohio State football: Running game still warming up

When Brandon Saine was nailed for a 1-yard loss last Saturday, the Ohio Stadium crowd grew restless.

When Brandon Saine was nailed for a 1-yard loss last Saturday, the Ohio Stadium crowd grew restless.

When he barely made it back to the line of scrimmage on the next play, one could almost hear the muttering.

Never mind that Ohio State was leading Ohio University 34-0 at the time, late in the first half. Never mind that quarterback Terrelle Pryor was in the midst of 16 straight completions and about to record his third straight 200-yard passing day.

For Buckeyes fans, the soul of the program is the team's ability to line up and pound an opponent into submission, with a tailback slashing through sizable holes opened by a dominant offensive line.

More often than not, that has not happened this season. Saine had a 100-yard day in the opener but is averaging just 52.7 yards rushing per game. Daniel Herron is averaging 45.7.

Goosed by Pryor's 165 yards, the statistics overall look fine: Ohio State is ranked 25th nationally in rushing at 206.3 yards per game.

The tailbacks probably will have more room to roam today. Eastern Michigan is ranked 117th against the run, giving up 253 yards per game.

But toss the numbers aside. So far, the running game hasn't passed the look test.

"We're normally used to having a Beanie Wells back there and just being able to hand the ball off all day," tight end Jake Stoneburner said. "I'm not saying we can't do that with our backs, but I feel like we have more talented other players, and that's leading us to passing the ball more."

Overall, nobody at Ohio State seems too concerned about the early struggles.

Is this a case of whistling past the graveyard? After all, against Ohio, tailbacks gained 3 yards or less on 13 of their 21 carries through three quarters (not including two short touchdown runs).

A closer review, though, reveals that the Bobcats loaded up to stop the run. Often, they outnumbered the Buckeyes, and the unblocked players came through to make the stops.

"There was no question that Ohio University knew that, 'Hey, we've got to take some chances,'" Dick Tressel said. "They took calculated risks, but the calculated risks are going to be a disaster if the other skilled guys perform."

Dick Tressel said he thinks that teams still are choosing to force Pryor to beat them with his arm. The strategy leaves an extra player to help contain the tailbacks and keep an eye on Pryor when he scrambles.

And the Buckeyes are making opponents pay in other ways, with a diverse passing game that the team has lacked for years.

Stoneburner is on pace to catch nearly 40 passes, the most for an Ohio State tight end since at least 2003. The running backs also have been heavily involved in the passing game, with 14 catches and two touchdowns.

Pryor is on track for one of the most prolific passing seasons in school history - more than 3,000 yards and 26 touchdowns at his current rate.

The result is that the offense is racking up more yards (460.7 per game) and points (41.3) than in any of Tressel's previous nine seasons.

"I feel our passing game is what's really been clicking right now, so why go away from it?" Stoneburner said.

Because fans fret that when November rolls around, and the Buckeyes are nursing a narrow lead against Penn State or Iowa, Saine and Herron might still be getting hit too often at the line of scrimmage.

kgordon@dispatch.com

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